Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi says Tehran will respond to any action against its interests. This after Israel warned it will respond to Iran’s weekend drone and missile attacks.
Tehran launched the attack over a suspected Israeli strike on its embassy compound in Syria earlier this month. Some high-ranking Iranian generals died in the attack.
Iranian authorities have categorically declared that the smallest action against their interests will certainly be with a severe, widespread and painful response against the perpetrator.
World leaders have continued to call for restraint as the tension rises in the Middle East. United Kingdom has urged Israel not to retaliate after Iran’s drone and missile attack.
“Our aim is to support stability and security, because it is right for the region and because, although the Middle East is thousands of miles away, it has direct effect on our security and prosperity at home. So, we are working urgently with our allies to de-escalate the situation and prevent further bloodshed. We want to see calmer heads prevail. We are directing all our diplomatic efforts to that end,” says British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak.
Iran says there was no pre-arranged agreement with any country prior to Tehran’s retaliatory attack against Israel.
“Our advice to all the supporters of the Zionist regime is to appreciate the value of Iran’s responsible and proportionate action instead of choosing inappropriate words about Iran, they should warn the usurping regime from more evil acts, which will have incalculable consequences for this regime,” says Iran’s Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Nasser Kanaani.
Israel says it remains on high alert.
“Even while under attack from Iran, we have not lost sight, not for one moment of a critical mission in Gaza to rescue our hostages from the hands of Iran’s proxies Hamas. It’s our moral duty to do everything in our power to bring 133 hostages back home. Hamas recently rejected the hostage release proposal offered to them by the mediators. Hamas and Iran want to ignite the Middle East and to escalate the region. We are still on high alert and assessing the situation,” says Israel Chief Military Spokesperson Daniel Hagari.
Most Israeli troops have been pulled out of the Palestinian enclave in preparation for an assault on its city of Rafah, where more than 1 million Palestinians are sheltering, but fighting has continued in various areas.
The besieged enclave is facing famine and widespread disease with almost all its inhabitants now homeless.
